(CIDRAP News)  In two new reports, the Canadian government gives itself a generally good grade for its response to the H1N1 pandemic but also lists many areas for improvement.

"Overall, the response of [health authorities] to the H1N1 pandemic is considered to have been effective," says the Public Health Agency of Canada's (PHAC's) report, released yesterday. The report covers the actions of that agency and of Health Canada.

(CIDRAP News)  Uganda is planning to vaccinate about 2.5 million people in its northern regions against yellow fever, following the recent confirmation that the disease is the cause of a 2-month-old outbreak that has killed more than 40 people, according to press reports.

Dec 28, 2010

(CIDRAP News)  An outbreak of about 100 illness cases in Illinois and Wisconsin has been attributed to pastries from an Illinois bakery that were tainted with Staphylococcus aureus, state and federal officials revealed recently.

Dec 23, 2010

(CIDRAP News)  The big food safety bill passed this week hands a heavy bundle of new responsibilities to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and most of the changes specified in the legislation are unlikely to come swiftly or easily.

Dec 23, 2010

(CIDRAP News)  Federal officials announced today they are collaborating on an investigation into a multistate Salmonella serotype I 4,[5],12:i:- outbreak, possibly linked to sprouts served on sandwiches at Jimmy Johns restaurants, that have sickened 89 people in 15 states and the District of Columbia.

(CIDRAP News)  Influenza activity jumped in the United States last week along with other Northern Hemisphere locations, and an official from the World Health Organization (WHO) said it's not yet clear if this season will make its mark as a bad one.